Taliban ambush fails; at least 100 killed

KABUL, Afghanistan -- U.S.-led and Afghan troops battled suspected Taliban insurgents in southern Afghanistan yesterday in ground clashes and airstrikes that left more than 100 militants dead, the coalition said.

KABUL, Afghanistan -- U.S.-led and Afghan troops battled suspected Taliban insurgents in southern Afghanistan yesterday in ground clashes and airstrikes that left more than 100 militants dead, the coalition said.

In a separate incident in eastern Afghanistan, three U.S. soldiers were killed when a suicide bomber attacked NATO troops helping to build a bridge, a U.S. official said.

The battle in southern Kandahar province's Shah Wali Kot district started after the joint force was ambushed by a large group of insurgents. They tried to overrun their position several times before being strafed by aircraft, a statement from the coalition said.

"Coalition aircraft destroyed the reinforced enemy emplacements and sniper positions as well as two trucks used to reinforce and re-supply the insurgent force," the statement said.

More than 100 suspected insurgents and an Afghan soldier were killed, the coalition said. The casualty figures could not be independently verified because of the remoteness of the area.

Violence is soaring in Afghanistan. This year, more than 3,900 people -- most of them militants -- have died, according to an Associated Press tally of casualty figures provided by Western and Afghan officials.

Also yesterday, U.S.-led and Afghan troops raided a house near Kandahar city, killing two suspected militants and detaining five others, a coalition statement said.

Those targeted in the raid were accused of facilitating bomb attacks against coalition and Afghan forces in Kandahar, the statement said. The people detained in the raid will be questioned by the military before being turned over to Afghan authorities.

In the Taliban-held Musa Qala district of Helmand province, militants ambushed a U.S.-Afghan force Monday, another coalition statement said.

The joint force fought back, targeting militants who were using several compounds and trenches for cover, the statement said. It said about a dozen militants were killed in the clash.